Running Scared

‘Running Scared as Hell’

I don’t believe I can begin to explain how disappointed I am with Wayne Kramer’s Running Scared starring Paul Walker. I recently reviewed Kramer’s more famous work The Cooler and so when I found out Running Scared was his most recent film, I had to see it. In truth, I feel that Kramer must have been struck by the inconsistency bug since he wrote both films and directed them both but one is infinitely better than the other. The reasons why? The writing, acting, and length.

Notice I did not mention direction because it is obvious in this movie that Kramer is a natural director. The visualization of scenes and shootouts and how to piece it all together must have required great vision and a hell of a lot of planning. The effects are mind-boggling and the editing is exquisite. The only real editing/directorial problem is the time. By the end of the movie, you will probably find yourself in the lobby trying to get away for a breather at least before you have to go endure more badly planned twists and turns. The last 30 minutes of the movie should have been cut down and should have been made clear. I still have no idea what Paul Walker was talking about that caused everyone to kill each other on the ice for the big shootout finale. At least the cinematography never relents. Kramer layers on the gritty feel in the scenes and the lighting and camera angles only accent this visual idea. Now if only it had been a good script.

Kramer’s writing isn’t bad, it just is devoid of almost all character emotions. It rambles and twists taking the audience along for a ride to …? Anyone? It honestly reminds me of Ultraviolet, the sophomoric failure of director Kurt Wimmer which, interestingly, share one of the same kid actors. The story of both tend not to follow any emotional continuity between scenes and therefore are strong on style but very weak on plot and acting. Running Scared almost feels like a poorly sketched commentary on corrupt city society. The cops are corrupt, mafia kills at will, pimps will kill their hoes whom have dreams, fathers are abusive, etc. Only at the end of the film after the fake burial of Walker’s character does it seem that the main character’s find peace out on a farm. Other ideas that support this theory that it is really a commentary on corrupt city society is the John Wayne thing going on with Oleg’s tweaked out abusive father and the stupid lines given by the pimp right before he is killed, “say hello to my little friend”, (WTF!!) and even the tangential storyline of Oleg being kidnapped by some scary crazy child molesters and killers. It makes me scared as hell of ever thinking of living near LA (I think that is where it takes place). However, the twists and turns are never explained in any rational manner. Some of it is honestly just too coincidental to be believable which supports my theory, but takes any emotional interest out of the film. For example, after killing the murderous molesters, Walker’s wife (Vera Farmiga) meets with Walkers character and decides to say then that she has seen real evil tonight. No remorse, just regret, probably at living in the city. Well, enough with this theory, time to move on to the acting theory.

The acting theory for this film is very simple. Perhaps if the leading man had been better or at least a more honed actor, the film and it’s underlining points could be emphasized better and contain more empathy from the audience. Walker plays his character a little too angry and over the top all the damn time and honestly I’m hoping he dies by the end of the movie. The character’s one time to really grab the audience is when he tries to have sex with his wife, a little too roughly, when she doesn’t seem that interested. He comes across as a rascist anti-russian sort of thug. At the end, pointing out he is an undercover cop does not excuse his behavior before. The one saving grace for him and his family is that he never hits his family or even threatens to unless he is joking with them. That is it. He treats his poor ailing father appalingly (who never has a real point in the story). Walker feels like someone just walking through the emotions of anxious, angry, and upset all the time and he is such a crummy person that I doubt anyone cares for him. As for his family, Vera Farmiga does a decent job as his wife and there does seem to be some sort of caring for Walker’s character. She plays the part of the distressed mother well. Alex Neuberger does a decent job of being Walker’s son and even Cameron Bright, whom I wonder about being a potential killer of films, gives a great show. I’m sorry if I seem harsh on Bright, but I haven’t seen much acting out of the kid to warrant being a lead kid actor in two movies now. I will say this, he looks creepy as hell and seeing him with a gun brings back memories of the Gorillaz song “Kids with Guns”. It’s true, the kid would be great in a remake of the Caulkin classic The Good Son. Everybody pulls off only an okay job in this film, which is impressive given the wandering storyline. Yet, the main lead actor, who we as an audience should worry about getting killed, does worse than the rest. I was worried throughout the movie for his family, never for him. Walker shows some possible potential, but right now he needs to focus on expanding himself and stick to supporting roles. He’s just not ready to carry a movie. The only actor I found myself truly interested in was Karel Roden who plays a despicable father for most of the film.

Conclusion

A good try on this film and it is very appealing visually, but Kramer needs to make it more concise and clear as a story just what the hell is going on. It needs some better actors in the cast or at least more emotional writing. Perhaps if Kramer had focused more on the relationships between characters instead of the visual tone, the film could have been better. In the end, interesting but might want to be left off of Kramer’s resume.

2.6 out 5

Wannabe

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-Wannabe

Babel

‘Babel speaks well of itself’

Every award season for the last several years there has been some movie that involves a cast of characters and instead of focusing on one major storyline,it tends to focus on the interweaving of human lives into a bigger tapestry. A good example of such a film was the best film winner last year Crash by Paul Haggis which explored the various types and prevalence of racism in today’s society. Last year’s Crash is this years Babel.

If Babel were to garner several Oscar nominations, it would be no surprise to Alejandro González Iñárritu who has an oscar nomination for each film he has made so far. His first film is perhaps the most unheard of, Amores Perros, but it did gain an Oscar nod for possible Best Foreign film. His next film was the more well-known 21 Grams in which most of the actors involved received Oscar nominations. So to say that I entered the film with high expectations should be fair. Thankfully, I was not disappointed. I have never seen his first film but 21 Grams I thought was better than the similar film Traffic. However, I truly feel that Alejandro González Iñárritu has finally come into his own with his recent masterwork Babel. The pace is brisk and energetic and even though the ties between the various characters takes a long time to come together, they do come together and don’t feel forced. The timeline is also well conceived in a minimalistic style so that everything falls into place with a single phone call and a detective visit. High praise should go to Guillermo Arriaga who wrote all of the films directed by Alejandro. High praise to Alejandro for delivering excellent films all the time and for making a film that is very relevant to a world that feels lost.

The film spans 4 major stories that are interlinked. The stories take place in Morrocco, Mexico, Japan, and America respectively and reveal the universality among man to need a connection to others. The film’s plot is really irrelevant (despite the fact that is amazing) except for how well it conveys its ideas and themes. For a film all about the inability of language and mankind to connect to each other, Babel makes its themes and points exquisitely clear. From the deaf Japanes girl looking for love to the unhappy couple who find their love for each other again only after one has been shot by accident. Each story is so unique and heart-wrenching that it is one of the most powerful movies of the year. The real problem for the film come Oscar time is it does utilize an undercurrent political commentary on America post-911. The inability for Brad Pitt to get his wife to a hospital fter she has been shot only to hear it is because the American government stopped the Morroccan ambulance so that they could send in their helicopter and publicize it could easily come off as criticism of American policy and how the government is trying to promote itself to its own citizens through newscoverage and not caring as much about the individuals in trouble. In fact, looking back on all the stories, the only real “bad guy” per se would be the American government. The great news is that Alejandro makes a conscious effort to downplay these elements and does reveal a difference in Americans and the American Government’s current policy. Thank you for that Alejandro, but I’m afraid come award time the political undercurrent might play against you. Or, since Hollywood is full of liberal nuts (supposedly) maybe it will boost the chances for this film.

As for acting, there will definitely be some nominations from this film. Brad Pitt plays one of the more believable and lovable roles that he has ever played. Although he doesn’t seem to stand out from the rest of the remarkable cast as well. Cate Blanchett on the other hand needs to go ahead and prepare a speech for that Oscar nod as her performance is riveting and sad and ultimately uplifting. Very impressive considering the little screen time she is given. The talk regarding these two actors has been very high since the film came out among critics, but I propose two other candidates. No, Gael Garcia Bernal. Yes he does a fine job but his necessity to the plot and his character just aren’t as interesting as others in the film. I suggest the young Morroccan son Boubker Ait El Caid and the deaf Japanese girl Rinko Kikuchi. Both of their performances are so believable and so powerful that you automatically like them even if you don’t agree with what they do. The idea of taking practice by shooting at cars does not seem like a great idea, but it is believable in their acting. These two unheard of actors take risks and drive fill their character’s shoes superbly (Plus Boubker Ait El Caid looks a little like a Middle-Eastern version of Jonathan Taylor Thomas, how cute!). Nobody in the cast stands badly and there is no doubt that you will leave this movie changed and/or affected in some way. This is a must-see movie for anyone truly interested in movies that make you think. If you like fluff, stay the hell away.

4.75 out of 5

Wannabe

For Your Consideration

'For Your Consideration Only'

Christopher Guest, by now almost a household name, has brought his most recent improv movie to the big screen. He is primarily known for the movies Best in Show and A Mighty Wind which features a group of talented actors and actresses improving the story and their way through scenes at a breathtakingly funny pace. He has already tackled dog shows, reunion folk concerts, and now...the Oscars. Sounds funny right? And it is, very funny, but not as commercially palatable nor funny as his past films.

The biggest problem with the film is that it is a film primarily made for film makers, critics, and anyone with a lot of knowledge of the backstage workings of the entertainment industry with a good dose of cynicism. That is not to say that all the jokes are mostly that way, but the few that are fall obviously flat and risk angering the audience when only a few people understand it and laugh, or chuckle quietly as I did. The other problem/asset is that the film is mocking the entertainment industry Oscar buzz and publicity. Normally Guest and company have taken on other fields in which rabid fans exist and make it commercially acceptable by mocking the conventions and personal attachment people achieve. The funniest part of Best in Show (for me at least) was the couple who had to take their dog to the therapist because the felt they had traumatized their baby by having sex in front of it. All of his films show the power of some seemingly inconsequential event and the effect it has over those who "live" for that event. The problem is that there are many actors and audience members who follow the Oscars and consider them not to be inconsequential. Instead of bringing an awareness of the the power of old folk music over people or the crazed desire to win the best fluffy dog prize, the film seems to highlight more the ridiculous and destructive nature of the Oscars and what they mean than the recognition of a job well done. This leads the characters into the problem of playing familiar stereotypes when the true brilliance of the older Guest films originates from the story forcing the actors to create new characters that will quickly become stereotypes by others.

Part of the fun of seeing a Guest film is seeing who from his old cast will be back and what new few will join the prestigious improve ranks of his company. A sure bet is seeing Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, Christopher Guest, Parker Posey, Jennifer Coolidge, and a bunch of others like Fred Willard and Jane Lynch. The great part is that it seems Guest is more than willing to swap around his leads, so once you are a part of the company, at some point you will be one of the leads. In this movie, the main leads are Catherine O’Hara, Parker Posey, and Harry Shearer. However, only one of them manages to pull off a character that can drive the audience. For a long time, Catherine O’Hara has shown acting chops in smaller movies like Home Alone. Finally, she has her chance to shine and she does it well. Her rise and fall during the movie is heartbreaking. If anyone or thing has a chance of being nominated this year, it is her. Parker Posey plays her part admirably but it is nothing amazing and Harry Shearer seems, well…too fake? I mean I realize he plays an actor whose biggest claim to fame is being a commercial actor for a hotdog company, but he never seems to be offended and he almost tries to hard to be “old-timey.” There are plenty of other great characterizations in the film, but honestly there is too much. What do I mean? Well, there are a bunch of people who show up in the film for one scene. Famous people, like Sandra O. The cast becomes so huge and the feel of the film becomes diluted among all the actors and subplots. It slows down the pace and can be very distracting. It also prevents the audience from becoming too involved with the characters when there are so many to keep up with. Plus you have the improv factor.

The improv factor is when you go to an improv show and you can quickly figure out which of the improve actors you like the best. The problem is that there may be certain games or many games in which that person doesn’t perform and when you leave you feel as if you have only seen an okay show. Guest is known for making improved movies meaning that he and co-writer Eugene Levy concoct an over arcing plot and they contrive the elements of the scene such where does the scene start, what happens in the scene and where does it end, but they never decide the dialogue. That is for the actors to do themselves through the chemistry they feel in the moment. In this case, there are so many actors that there are several actors that I wanted to see more of and several actors that I could have done more without.

Conclusion

With all of that being said, the movie is still very funny. The changing of the title of the movie being filmed in the story is a hilarious event and I felt there were several things they could have spent more time on. However, if you are going to see the film preparing to laugh your socks off (yes yes, rock them, I know) and see the best damn Guest film ever, well then you’ll be disappointed. It is a funny film and it comes off well, but here’s to hoping that Guest fixes his next film with a littler company and more focused plot line. 3.25 out of 5

Wannabe